We get a brief look at the dark side of Paris; according to the narrator,
“the only social peril is darkness.” A quartet of bandits named Claquesous,
Gueulemer, Babet, and Montparnasse rule the slums from 1830 to 1835. These
men call themselves the Patron-Minette and use a large variety of pseudonyms
both to carry out their own crimes and to hire out their services to anyone
who is willing to pay for a crime he or she wants committed. The prime
importance of this group is that Thenardier eventually uses their service
and finally joins them.

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Notes

The existence of the criminal element brings in a little more of
the Parisian culture. The criminal underworld horrified the
people of Paris even as it intrigued them. Almost anyone could
be a part of it due to the ease with which people could disguise
themselves and take on multiple identities. Certain individuals,
however, seem to have developed a pattern which police began
to recognize, and which individuals like Thenardier saw as an
invitation for a life of profitable crime for themselves. The idea
of profit was an illusion however; Thenardier, once he has lost
his business, never has anything else to show for himself.